A life in lists

My signature knit (circa 1998)

Last time I checked (half a decade or so ago), my step father still had the first scarf I ever knit, aged approximately 11, in shades of semi-neon pink, purple and green. Possibly he still has it (along with the 90's mega-sized stereo equipment that he also refuses to part with).

This is not that scarf. But it is the fourth (I think) scarf that I ever knit. Indeed, the fourth thing that ever came off my needles. You see, I rather specialised in scarves, to the exclusion of all else (namely anything that required me to intentionally increase, decrease, change colours more than once every 50 rows or so or cast off without assistance).

This particular scarf, created in a random assortment of colours, weights and row length (I couldn't increase on purpose, but I was the queen of accidental row enhancement), accompanied me to school for two or three winters from around the age of 16, and thanks to it's 100% acrylic content, still looks as good as the day it was cast off. Which is, admittedly, not very good.

I'd like to say that my sartorial elegance has come on leaps and bounds since then, but we all know I'd be telling a horrible lie. I have managed to control my row length issues now, and mostly things only end up triangular when they're meant to be.

I suppose, feasibly, I could knit my step father The Scarf: The Next Generation, but I'm not sure he's entirely ready to part with the old one (or the stereo).

Yarn along

We've had a hard couple of weeks. Nothing remotely dramatic, just normal family things that occasionally pile up and conspire to leave one with not a single moment spare to rest, mentally or physically. A combination of an etsy shop that is getting busier every day, one child in the midst of potty training, a baby who might politely be described as 'high needs' (read: sobs if you even break eye contact, never mind leave the room) and a house that seems to have a small army of elves rushing round making mess (I suppose it might be the children again) means that I've hardly had a moment to even catch up on sewing, knitting or reading blogs, never mind actually write the odd post of my own.

However, in the past couple of days I've been carving out just a tiny bit more time for relaxing. After one stressful day too many, I realised that actually instead of stressing about the situation and wondering when it will change, I need to be a bit more accepting and just work with what we've got, for now. Change will come soon enough, one way or another (it's always guaranteed when small children are involved).

I've been spending my moments of relaxation finishing the last few inches of binding on the Sunshine Quilt, and knitting and reading. Not much, but the odd stitch here and the odd line there. It all adds up, right?

This is a Baby Sophisticate cardigan (that Ravelry link reminds me, I must set up a project for this cardigan today) for Jasper. The yarn is llama yarn from Adriafil (I think it's 50% wool, 50% llama). I've had it kicking around my stash for ages, having bought a sweater quantity a couple of years back, and then promptly lost two skeins, therefore rendering it useless for sweater knitting. I'm trying to work my way through the remaining skeins when the right project pops up, and this seems perfect. Although the yarn is pretty hairy, it's not scratchy at all, and feels much softer and less itchy than the picture suggests.

I'm hoping to get this one knocked on the head in the next few days so I can cast on some longies for Jasper - I love the idea of keeping him cosy and warm in wool during the winter months, after the success of the one knitted soaker I made for him as a newborn.

Playing along with Ginny's Yarn Along today.

Yarn along

Playing along with Ginny's yarn along this week. I rather like this idea of linking knitting and reading, two of the most relaxing things known to mankind (well, known to me, at any rate).

And what do you mean that doesn't look like much of a sweater yet? And what do you mean that ribbing looks like I couldn't find an appropriately sized needle and just did it in the needle I was using for the body?

I promise you that Teddy won't mind. He'll be too busy being impressed with those boats (yes, they are boats. Thank you. They are awaiting a row or two of funnel and some french knot portholes).

I have to say I'm not enormously in love with this colourwork thing. I very much like the idea of it, and I suspect if I had lots of time to devote to knitting for sheer pleasure of process instead of trying to actually create useful garments in a timely manner to get our family through the winter that I would enjoy it more, but I'm mostly just finding it plain old slow going.

Added to which I am following an Elizabeth Zimmermann 'pattern' for the first time and am scared. I'm looking forward to being done with the boats and just getting on with the knitting/maths combo unique to any of Elizabeth Zimmermann's instructions. At least then I'll only have one thing to worry about.

Oh, and the yarn is brilliant. It's Jamieson & Smith 2ply jumper weight (Ravelry link), and it's proper woolly wool. Not as soft as some of the more glamorous yarns, but warm and well dyed and not scratchy and 'sticky' enough that I'm not too worried about my intarsia slipping undone at a moment's notice. The colour range is amazing too. If you're thinking about using it, it's worth investing in a shade card (out of stock at the moment, but they do reappear at random every now and again. Or just save a bit of every yarn you order and make your own. You'll get through them all in a decade or so...)

Although I am not entirely thrilled with this whole colourwork thing so far, I am still determined to give proper Fair Isle a try one day. Although perhaps not till I've made a bit more of a dent in the winter knitting and both children are reliably sleeping in the evening.

Oh, and the books are interesting too. There's not a lot I don't know about budget cooking (surviving on one salary in one of the most expensive areas of England outside of London for three years has given me a whole new area of expertise), but How to Feed Your Whole Family... has managed to give even me a few new ideas and recipes, as well as a smile about the laughably long complete title every time I pick it up. I'm only on about page eight of Free Range Education, but so far it's an interesting read.

Incidentally, am I the only one incapable of reading only one book at a time? One the whole I stick to only one per genre, but it is usual for me to have at least one cookery, one non-fiction and one fiction book on the go at any given time.

Frippery and fancy things

What do you call unnecessary things? Apparently in our family we either have a lot of unnecessary things, or think lots of things are unnecessary, as we seem to have a lot of names. Among my favourites are:

1. Tat - unnecessary things that are also not terribly interesting
2. Frip (or frippery) - things that I imagine my mother thinks are unnecessary
3. Pootlum - craft related unnecessary things. Particularly applicable to scrapbooking supplies (my sister's weakness), but can be used for any crafty supply in a pinch
4. Crap - Adam's sometimes word for most of what occupies my workroom, the kitchen, the dining room, most of our house. Sometimes I suspect that he is more of a minimalist than me
5. Junk - unnecessary things that are going to be thrown out just as soon as I find the time/inclination
6. Curios - unnecessary things that I am trying to make necessary by giving them a fancy name and displaying them because they look cool
7. Treasure - things that I think are necessary that I have brought home from boot fairs (or been given), but that Adam thinks are less essential to our family's wellbeing (vintage buttons seem to come under this heading quite often). Depending on who is talking, this term can be substituted for 'crap'

These needles (and the bottle), by the way, fall somewhere between treasure and curios. I suspect that they will sit and accumulate dust for a while in my workroom before slowly making their way to the 'junk' category, as unfortunately they are mostly too warped or fragile to actually use. Love the bright colours though. They came in a bundle of unwanted fabrics, yarn and embroidery threads from a friend whose grandmother had passed away, leaving a house full of hand making supplies.

Incidentally, I can't remember the last time I picked up my knitting needles. I have a reasonably complicated sweater on the go for Teddy, and I think I need something a bit more mindless to get me back into the groove. I think maybe another wool wrap for Jasper. I love the one we have, but to go to all the (occasional) effort of lanolising for just one wrap seems pointless. Much better to have two, no? I'm quite looking forward to autumn - I have some longies planned which I think will be rather cute.

Because, you know, I'll have lots of time for knitting with two kids

 

I made this project bag yesterday. I was feeling a little hormonal and tired, and I needed a nice easy project that would give me maximum satisfaction. And, importantly, be a project for me, not for the baby, Teddy or a necessity.

I took my time over this bag, which I'm hoping will be the first of a handful (hey, maybe I'll even write up a tutorial, or make a few for the etsy store, if there's some interest), ready and waiting to be picked up on the way out of the door and filled with everything I could need for a knitting project.

The drawstring bag contains...

A little zippered pouch to keep essentials in, such as...

Scissors, pen, needle book, measuring tape (complete with felt/velcro closure) and brightly coloured wool for stitch markers (I've never been able to get on with actual stitch markers). The needle book, scissor holder and tape measure fastener were ridiculously speedy to construct (the joys of sewing with felt), and make me feel like the whole thing is more a project 'kit' than just an assortment of spare bits from my sewing room.

I said I took time over the little details with this project, and it was totally worth it. The measuring tape label and drawstring make me very, very happy. They're made from Japanese tape from my LQS. I am manfully resisting a massive (read: expensive) order of Japanese tape from Superbuzzy or Etsy to make more drawstring bags (it's not terribly cheap to buy this kind stuff in the UK, on the whole, especially if you can create an order large enough from the States or Japan to justify the inevitable customs charge handling fee from the Post Office. Finding enough for large orders is not a problem round these parts. Paying for said large orders is slightly more problematic).

The other detail you might have noticed is the laminated A5 pattern. I printed it onto A4, changing the print setting to two pages per A4 page and making it double sided (although, given the temperament of my printer, it would have been far quicker to have just printed two pieces of paper and laminated them together), then laminated it. Obviously, by 'laminated', I mean 'sandwiched between two pieces of sticky backed plastic', not anything fancy involving machinery and heat. I don't think I'll bother with every single pattern I do, but for one that's likely to be on the needles for a couple of weeks or more (which this shawl most certainly is, given the imminent baby arrival), or that I might make more than once, it's a nice way of keeping the pattern a little bit less dog eared and worn.

If you're observant (or, indeed, even if you're not, since I just stuck a picture in front of you), you'll have noticed that the knitting project bag co-ordinates rather nicely with my change bag. No accident - I am totally in love with this linen/denim/Liberty print combo. To me, it's the perfect mix of rugged, practical and downright gorgeous. i've got a couple more 'chuck in the change bag' projects on the go, which I'll hopefully get a chance to (a) finish and (b) photograph and blog about before the baby appears.

Incidentally, these photos were taken at our first family trip of the year to the beach. I couldn't believe how mild it was, even though it's still only March and we went yesterday evening after Adam finished work. Technically, I suppose it's not exactly the first trip of the year, since we went a few weeks back, but it was so cold that I refused to get out of the car, so I'm totally not counting that one. Spring is most definitely here, though, if we're able to squeeze in beach trips after office hours!

Almost the end of the baby knitting (for now)

We've always used washable nappies for Teddy, but never really got round to giving wool a proper go - something I'm determined to rectify this time, mainly so I can continue to knit these super-cute, super fast soakers.

If you don't know anything about using wool with washable nappies, there's some good basic information here. Suffice to say that wool is, allegedly, more or less magic when it comes to washable nappies. It allows skin to breathe, doesn't smell and (I am promised) doesn't make everything you dress you baby in soaking wet as soon as they wee.

Anyway, I figured it was worth a shot since we're now washable nappy experts after over two years' using them with Teddy, so I knitted up this soaker last night. And I mean, literally, knitted it last night. I think I cast on at about 4pm, stopped for dinner and to play with Teddy, and it was finished by the time I went to bed at 10:45pm (which is a pretty late night for me at the minute. Rock 'n' roll).

I have to admit to not finding the pattern desperately well written - if I hadn't known roughly what shape I was aiming for, and hadn't more or less known how to get there by myself, this wrap would have ended up very badly. I'll pop some notes on the Ravelry project page when I get a chance. Nonetheless, the actual design seems pretty sound, and, most importantly, matched the gauge I was getting with the yarn I had (I am on a bit of a yarn diet at the moment, so there was no yarn substitution option).

Project details:

• Yarn: Rowan Purelife British Sheep Breeds undyed DK (Bluefaced Leicester), held double
• Quantity: 100g (2 balls), with a teeny bit left over
• Needles: 4.5mm and 3.5mm  I didn't have the needles called for in the pattern, so I just used the smaller ones for ribbing and the larger ones (on which I made gauge) for the stockinette portion
• Pattern: The Curly Purly Soaker
• Finished dimensions (unstretched): waist 11.5" (with plenty of stretch), rise 8", body width 14"
• More info: on the Ravelry project page

I actually wanted to knit the soaker pattern from the lovely Vintage Baby Knits, but I wasn't easily getting gauge, and the smallest size in that pattern was 3-6 months, and my pregnant brain wasn't up to doing the required maths to solve the gauge issue and size down. However, if this is a successful experiment, I foresee an awful lot more wool soakers in our lives - so quick and satisfying to knit, and so squooshy in lovely pure wool.

Oh, and this project marks the beginning of the end of the baby knitting, at least until it actually arrives (really rather soon now! Eek). There's a fair bit of sewing left to do (sitting behind me on my cutting table are a foam pad and some PUL that I am hoping to miraculously transform into a change mat today), but I really feel that, with the help of The List, I've managed to make most of the things I wanted to make before the imminent arrival (I am so pleased with The List). Of course, there's plenty of knitting for Teddy, Adam and me to get started on, so my hands won't be idle as I wallow on the sofa counting down the days...

My creative space...

Because babies have feet too.

And because I'm totally counting weaving in ends as creative, I have decided that I am allowed to play along with Kirsty again this week.

These boots are all finished, knit-wise. The pattern couldn't have been any easier, and I can see it lending itself well to being scaled up if these boots are a success.

Rather than show you them again tomorrow when I've woven in the ends, I'm calling this a tick on the March List, and here are the (very simple)

project details:

• Yarn: Madelinetosh tosh sock (4ply) in Thyme
• Quantity: Really not very much. Maybe 20 grams? I have a lot of the 100g skein left
• Needles: 2.25mm (DPNs)
• Pattern: Christine's stay on baby bootees
• More info: on the Ravelry project page

For some reason I've rather gone off this colour since buying it, but I figure since these are baby bootees, I'll only have to look at them for a few weeks before they're outgrown. The rest of the Thyme coloured yarn will go into some striped project, I expect. Or socks - I rarely hate any yarn once it's become a pair of socks. However, I do love love love knitting with Madelinetosh sock yarn (in fact, I've liked all the Madelinetosh yarn I've tried so far, although superwash wool isn't usually my most favourite thing to knit with), so at least it's nice to knit, if not so much to admire afterwards.

By the way, if you want to have a look at lots of inspiring Creative Spaces, pop along and click on some links.

Blanket/shawl

I go back and forth on this blanket. it was really enjoyable to knit (the Koigu yarn I bought from Loop in London is just lovely to knit with) and the pattern was great, but I just can't decide quite how I feel about variegated yarn. I sometimes feel that the stitch definition is lost a little with all the colour changes, and in a project like this, the texture really is the point of the thing.

I used Elizabeth Zimmerman's square baby shawl (From February's entry in the fabulous Knitter's Almanac), and added some textured stitches on the non-increase rows. I feel like using an E.Z. pattern means I've graduated as a 'proper' knitter, and I can't wait to cast on for another of her patterns (probably a sweater of some kind for Teddy, although who knows when that will be)

Project details:

• Yarn: Koigu Painters Palette Premium Merino (fingering weight)
• Quantity: 150g (3 skeins)
• Needles: 4mm (I think that's a US6?)
• Pattern: Elizabeth Zimmerman's
• Finished dimensions: approx 26" square
• More info on the Ravelry project page

So, it's not my favouritest thing that I've ever knit, but it's a useful blanket in a nice colourway, and I suspect that in about a month it will graduate from blanket for baby to neckwarmer for me - I draped of  it round my neck while I was looking for my camera to do the photo shoot for it earlier, and was instantly struct by how soft and yummy it was, and by how much I need to knit myself about a hundred mini-shawl/neckwarmer thingies (I'm especially liking the look of Lavalette, inspired by Yarnpig's version, or perhaps a small Shetland Triangle. I'd be going for the ubiquitous Ishbel, but I'm just about to cast on for a big version of that, and I don't want two identical lace projects in my life). I am a big fanscarves/neckwarmers/cowls/anything that you can put around your neck - how is it possible that I didn't notice this use for lace knitting before? Plus, you know, Adam will be just thrilled - he sometimes jokes that he didn't see my neck till we'd been dating about a year, and lace knitting for my neck will surely mean that the shoulder-to-chin-coverage season will be extended even longer than it already is.

Hand making (or breaking?) the environment

I've posted on this issue before, but with the inevitable stepping up of my hand making (you'll noticed I avoid using the word 'crafting'. I hate it and all its, to me, twee connotations of pointless knick knacks that no one wants) this year, I've found that the environmental impact of what I'm doing is increasingly at the forefront of my mind.

Mainly, for me, the issue is the purchase of fabric or yarn (sure, I use some energy running my sewing machine, but it's a fairly negligible sum according to my energy meter). Every yard of cotton I buy, every skein of wool, has had some kind of impact. Sure, I've bought a lot of non-organic, non-ethically minded quilting cottons and yarns over the past couple of years. But since late last year, I've been making a real effort to move back towards more conscious hand making - that is, thinking about the journey that the raw materials have made to get to me.

For me, this has meant a couple of steps when planning a project:

1. Can I buy British? Not possible with cotton, but it is possible to buy some great British yarns: Jamiesons for Shetland wool, Rowan's Purelife British Sheep Breeds range (the Purelife range also includes some great recycled yarns), Cornish Organic Wool, and countless hand spun and hand dyed yarns from up and down the country. I've not had cause to yet, but if I wanted to buy linen, I would also be able to buy Irish linen. I know that in the States it is even easier to stick to 'local' (i.e. American produced) products, as (a) there is still a lot of cotton grown there and (b) it's bigger. There are more sheep.
2. Is there an organic option? I've taken the decision that if I am unable to find an organic equivalent, I won't beat myself up for buying the non-organic version, but I will always attempt to find an organic version first (I'm thinking particularly of cotton here). For instance, if I want to make a quilt in a particular palette I'll search for organic options first, then make up the difference with non-organics. Some basic colours, particularly cream, ivory, white, blues and yellows, as well as shirting, denim and twill, are available organically with very little hassle, and there is a huge rise in interesting organic quilting cottons, jerseys and wovens in actual nice prints and colours.
3. Is there a lower impact version? For instance, if I'm not able to find interesting prints on organic cotton, what about a cotton/linen mix? Linen takes far less water and pesticide to grow than cotton, so even non-organic linen is relatively low impact. So, yeah, buying cotton/linen mixes like Echino and Kokka fabrics won't save the world single handed, but if you can substitute a few yards here and there with linen or linen mix, it's a few gallons of water or a bit of pesticide that didn't get used. There are probably plenty of other substitutions for fabrics and yarns that make a bit of difference, and every little helps, right? Incidentally, I'm still not sure about bamboo fabrics - I think some processing methods are great, but apparently there are some methods that are so intensive that they kind of negate the benefits of using an easily grown substance like bamboo. Also if you've used bamboo fabric, you'll know it wears our reasonably fast compared to cotton or linen, so it's not great for things you're hoping to pass on as family heirlooms. Brilliant for things like dish cloths and baby clothes though.
4. Can I use up what I have? Most hand makers have got a stash of some description kicking around, be it yarn, fabric or paper. Where possible, I try to actually use this stash rather than automatically buying more. Again, if I can't find what I want in amongst what I've got, I'm not ruling out buying more, but I always try to really think about whether I can cope with using a mint green half a shade lighter than I'd originally intended, but that I already have a couple of yards of.
5. Am I maximising what I have? Every last scrap of fabric or yarn can be used somehow. Whether it's colourwork knitting or postage stamp quilts, there are fabulous and gorgeous and imaginative ways to use up scraps. Or maybe someone else you know would use them? I occasionally read blog posts from quilters who don't save any scrap smaller than a fat eighth, for example, and it just seems like such a waste. I know I (and I'm sure there are other weirdos like me) love scraps almost more than actual yardage of fabric - there's something so exciting about digging through a scrap bin!

Sorry for the ramble, I've been thinking about this a lot recently and I just wanted to share some thoughts.

Spring is not quite sprung or, Knitting posts, day 3

 

I got so sick and tired of being housebound this morning (the collapsing pelvis continues unabated) that I dragged my chair out to the garden and knitted while Teddy turned himself into a walking mud pie. Apart from a near miss with the ball of Koigu and a 'washed' (Teddy style. So more mud) bucket, it was absolutely wonderful to get some fresh air, especially now it's s-l-o-w-l-y becoming warm enough to be comfortable (with a hat and coat on, obviously) even thought I can't dash around to keep warm.

Even in our embarrassingly unkempt garden (I searched through my pictures of Teddy from this morning for one where the garden didn't look like a wasteland, to no avail) there are a few signs of spring, from the odd uncurling blossom to the weeds that are returning to my vegetable patches with a vengeance. Which reminds me, we really must think about some actual vegetables soon.

Also, I'm so sorry if you're not interested in knitting. That seems to be pretty much all I do at the moment. That WIP is going to be another baby blanket (what can I say? Turns out I like baby blankets), and you can see more details on the Ravelry project page if you're interested (my first Elizabeth Zimmerman knit! I feel like I'm graduating as a proper knitter). The Koigu yarn is wonderful to knit with, incidentally.